Floristička analiza livadske vegetacije klasa Molinio-Arrhenatheretea i Festuco-Brometea u Srbiji

The grassland vegetation of Serbia as an important resource for agriculture is characterized by exceptional biodiversity of plant and animal species. Different types of grassland ecosystems develop in a variety of habitat types, geological substrates, climates and soils. This paper presents the exceptional floristic richness of the grassland vegetation of mesic communities of the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea class and of dry mountain communities of the Festuco-Brometea class in Serbia. Floristic analysis was performed on a set of 3346 phytocoenological relevés of different types of grassland vegetation in Serbia. The analysis has shown that the grassland flora of these classes is consists of 1533 plant species from 448 genera, which are classified into 88 families of higher plants. Most of the genera and species of plants which build the grassland vegetation of Serbia belong to the families Asteraceae, Poaceae and Fabaceae. The species characteristic for the communities classified into the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea and Festuco-Brometea classes are shown. Knowledge of the floristic diversity of the grassland communities of Serbia is important in order to recognize the qualitative and quantitative changes that occur due to the negative impacts of abandonment or inappropriate use of these ecosystems in agriculture and to take appropriate measures to protect and restore the grassland vegetation habitats.Livadska vegetacija Srbije kao važan resurs za poljoprivredu nosilac je izuzetnog biodiverziteta biljnih i životinjskih vrsta. Različiti tipovi livadskih ekosistema razvijaju se na raznovrsnim tipovima staništa, geološke podloge, klime i zemljišta. U ovom radu prikazano je izuzetno florističko bogatstvo livadske vegetacije dolinskih vlažnih zajednica klase Molinio-Arrhenatheretea i suvih brdsko-planinskih zajednica klase Festuco-Brometea u Srbiji. Floristička analiza je urađena na setu od 3346 fitocenoloških snimaka različitih tipova livadske vegetacije Srbije. Analiza je pokazala da livadsku floru ovih klasa gradi 1533 biljne vrste iz 448 rodova koje su razvrstane u 88 familija viših biljaka. Najveći broj rodova i vrsta biljaka koje grade livadsku vegetaciju Srbije pripada familijama Asteraceae, Poaceae i Fabaceae. Prikazane su vrste koje su karakteristične za zajednice klasifikovane u klase Molinio-Arrhenatheretea i Festuco-Brometea. Poznavanje florističkog diverziteta livadskih zajednica Srbije je značajno kako bi se prepoznale kvalitativne i kvantitativne promene do kojih dolazi usled negativnih uticaja napuštanja ili neadekvatnog korišćenja ovih ekosistema u poljoprivredi i preduzele odgovarajuće mere u cilju zaštite i obnove staništa livadske vegetacije

Sinekološka i fitocenološka studija livadske vegetacije Srbije

Meadow vegetation of Serbia represents an outstanding resource for agriculture, occupying about 27% of the total agricultural area of the country (1.460.000 ha) as the most represented type of the agroecosystem. Scientific aims of the thesis comprised a revision of syntaxonomy of meadow vegetation of Serbia of the classes Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, Festuco-Brometea and Festucetea vaginatae, followed by analysis of environmental impacts on differentiation of the meadow vegetation of Serbia using indicator values and the quality assessment of the grasslands through quality value of individual species. Numeric classification enabled status assessment and revision of syntaxonomy of grassland communities originally considered as Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, Festuco-Brometea and Festucetea vaginatae for entire region of Serbia. Analyses of the meadow vegetation were performed on data set containing 3346 of phytocoenological relevés, out of 1449 and 1897 belong to class Molinio-Arrhenatheretea and Festuco-Brometea (including the class Festucetea vaginatae), respectively. Numeric classification of the huge data set showed that relevés of the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea made 13 clusters, which relatively clear responded to alliances of the class. Clusters of that class made two distinct groups corresponding to orders Molinietalia and Trifolio-Hordeetalia. As diagnostic species of the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea the following are noted: Trifolium resupinatum, Poa trivialis, Bromus racemosus, Ranunculus repens, Trifolium patens, Agrostis stolonifera, Trifolium fragiferum, Alopecurus pratensis, Scirpus sylvaticus, Lysimachia nummularia, Carex hirta, Potentilla reptans, Hordeum secalinum, Alopecurus rendlei, Molinia caerulea, Carex distans, Deschampsia cespitosa, Carex otrubae, Ranunculus sardous, Lythrum salicaria and Galium palustre. The most important environmental factors determining development of valley meadows of the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea were the moisture and content of the soil nutrients. Numeric classification of the classes Festuco-Brometea and Festucetea vaginatae indicated the existence of 11 clusters...Livadska vegetacija Srbije predstavlja izuzetan resurs za poljoprivredu i zauzima 27% poljoprivrednih površina (1.460.000 ha); po obimu površina ovo je najrasprostranjeniji tip agroekosistema u širem smislu. Metode numeriĉke klasifikacije su omogućile procenu statusa i reviziju sintaksonomskog poloţaja livadskih zajednica klasa Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, Festuco-Brometea i Festucetea vaginatae za celokupno podruĉje Srbije. Analize livadske vegetacije Srbije izvršene su na setu od 3346 fitocenoloških snimaka, od ĉega 1449 snimaka pripada klasi Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, a 1897 klasi Festuco-Brometea, zajedno sa klasom Festucetea vaginatae. Numeriĉka analiza velikog seta podataka livadskih sintaksona Srbije je pokazala da se snimci klase Molinio-Arrhenatheretea grupišu u 13 klastera, koji relativno dobro odgovaraju svezama ove klase. Klasteri ove klase su grupisani u dve grupe koje odgovaraju redovima Molinietalia i Trifolio-Hordeetalia. Kao dijagnostiĉke vrste klase Molinio-Arrhenatheretea izdvojile su se: Trifolium resupinatum, Poa trivialis, Bromus racemosus, Ranunculus repens, Trifolium patens, Agrostis stolonifera, Trifolium fragiferum, Alopecurus pratensis, Scirpus sylvaticus, Lysimachia nummularia, Carex hirta, Potentilla reptans, Hordeum secalinum, Alopecurus rendlei, Molinia caerulea, Carex distans, Deschampsia cespitosa, Carex otrubae, Ranunculus sardous, Lythrum salicaria i Galium palustre. Najvaţniji faktori koji utiĉu na razvoj dolinskih livadskih zajednica su vlaţnost i koliĉina hranljivih materija u zemljištu. Numeriĉka analiza suvih livadskih zajednica ranije shvaćenih kao vegetacija klasa Festuco-Brometea i Festucetea vaginatae, pokazala je da se dobro izdvajaju 11 klastera. Jasno su istaknuti klasteri koji odgovaraju svezama Festucion rupicolae i Festucion valesiacae, Scabioso-Trifolion dalmatici i redu Halacsyetalia sendtneri. Naroĉito je znaĉajno blisko grupisanje klastera vegetacije sa vrstama Danthonia alpina, Koeleria pyramidata, Agrostis capillaris i Chrysopogon gryllus, koji ĉine veoma znaĉajne i izrazito rasprostranjene livade Balkanske sveze Chrysopogono-Danthonion alpinae. TakoĊe je pokazano da se vegetacija stepskih panonskih livada, prvobitno opisana u klasi Festucetea vaginatae, grupiše sa vegetacijom klase Festuco-Brometea..

Synecological and phytocoenological study of grassland vegetation of Serbia

Livadska vegetacija Srbije predstavlja izuzetan resurs za poljoprivredu i zauzima 27% poljoprivrednih površina (1.460.000 ha); po obimu površina ovo je najrasprostranjeniji tip agroekosistema u širem smislu. Metode numeriĉke klasifikacije su omogućile procenu statusa i reviziju sintaksonomskog poloţaja livadskih zajednica klasa Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, Festuco-Brometea i Festucetea vaginatae za celokupno podruĉje Srbije. Analize livadske vegetacije Srbije izvršene su na setu od 3346 fitocenoloških snimaka, od ĉega 1449 snimaka pripada klasi Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, a 1897 klasi Festuco-Brometea, zajedno sa klasom Festucetea vaginatae. Numeriĉka analiza velikog seta podataka livadskih sintaksona Srbije je pokazala da se snimci klase Molinio-Arrhenatheretea grupišu u 13 klastera, koji relativno dobro odgovaraju svezama ove klase. Klasteri ove klase su grupisani u dve grupe koje odgovaraju redovima Molinietalia i Trifolio-Hordeetalia. Kao dijagnostiĉke vrste klase Molinio-Arrhenatheretea izdvojile su se: Trifolium resupinatum, Poa trivialis, Bromus racemosus, Ranunculus repens, Trifolium patens, Agrostis stolonifera, Trifolium fragiferum, Alopecurus pratensis, Scirpus sylvaticus, Lysimachia nummularia, Carex hirta, Potentilla reptans, Hordeum secalinum, Alopecurus rendlei, Molinia caerulea, Carex distans, Deschampsia cespitosa, Carex otrubae, Ranunculus sardous, Lythrum salicaria i Galium palustre. Najvaţniji faktori koji utiĉu na razvoj dolinskih livadskih zajednica su vlaţnost i koliĉina hranljivih materija u zemljištu. Numeriĉka analiza suvih livadskih zajednica ranije shvaćenih kao vegetacija klasa Festuco-Brometea i Festucetea vaginatae, pokazala je da se dobro izdvajaju 11 klastera. Jasno su istaknuti klasteri koji odgovaraju svezama Festucion rupicolae i Festucion valesiacae, Scabioso-Trifolion dalmatici i redu Halacsyetalia sendtneri. Naroĉito je znaĉajno blisko grupisanje klastera vegetacije sa vrstama Danthonia alpina, Koeleria pyramidata, Agrostis capillaris i Chrysopogon gryllus, koji ĉine veoma znaĉajne i izrazito rasprostranjene livade Balkanske sveze Chrysopogono-Danthonion alpinae. TakoĊe je pokazano da se vegetacija stepskih panonskih livada, prvobitno opisana u klasi Festucetea vaginatae, grupiše sa vegetacijom klase Festuco-Brometea...Meadow vegetation of Serbia represents an outstanding resource for agriculture, occupying about 27% of the total agricultural area of the country (1.460.000 ha) as the most represented type of the agroecosystem. Scientific aims of the thesis comprised a revision of syntaxonomy of meadow vegetation of Serbia of the classes Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, Festuco-Brometea and Festucetea vaginatae, followed by analysis of environmental impacts on differentiation of the meadow vegetation of Serbia using indicator values and the quality assessment of the grasslands through quality value of individual species. Numeric classification enabled status assessment and revision of syntaxonomy of grassland communities originally considered as Molinio-Arrhenatheretea, Festuco-Brometea and Festucetea vaginatae for entire region of Serbia. Analyses of the meadow vegetation were performed on data set containing 3346 of phytocoenological relevés, out of 1449 and 1897 belong to class Molinio-Arrhenatheretea and Festuco-Brometea (including the class Festucetea vaginatae), respectively. Numeric classification of the huge data set showed that relevés of the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea made 13 clusters, which relatively clear responded to alliances of the class. Clusters of that class made two distinct groups corresponding to orders Molinietalia and Trifolio-Hordeetalia. As diagnostic species of the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea the following are noted: Trifolium resupinatum, Poa trivialis, Bromus racemosus, Ranunculus repens, Trifolium patens, Agrostis stolonifera, Trifolium fragiferum, Alopecurus pratensis, Scirpus sylvaticus, Lysimachia nummularia, Carex hirta, Potentilla reptans, Hordeum secalinum, Alopecurus rendlei, Molinia caerulea, Carex distans, Deschampsia cespitosa, Carex otrubae, Ranunculus sardous, Lythrum salicaria and Galium palustre. The most important environmental factors determining development of valley meadows of the Molinio-Arrhenatheretea were the moisture and content of the soil nutrients. Numeric classification of the classes Festuco-Brometea and Festucetea vaginatae indicated the existence of 11 clusters..

Standard microscopic slide preparation technique as a new and useful tool for analyzing mucilage content in marshmallow root

Marshmallow (Althaea officinalis L.) root is used as a drug in medicine, pharmaceutical, cosmetic as well as in food products, due to the content of mucilage with a broad range of physicochemical properties. Since mucilage content in roots depends on genotype and growing conditions, the quality control is, therefore, one of the major tasks in the rational use of the drug. In this paper we compare data for mucilage content in roots obtained by standard procedure which implies measuring of swelling ratio in dried samples, with anatomical features of roots obtained by different methods for anatomical analysis, and we have shown that anatomical method could be used for determination of mucilage content in marshmallow root

Procena kvaliteta polu-prirodnih travnjaka centralne Srbije korišćenjem fitocenoloških i numeričkih analiza

The aim of this paper is to present a numeric-statistical model by which it is possible to evaluate the quality of the observed grassland upon floristic and vegetation assessment. Thanks to this new methodological approach, the impact of each individual plant species on overall quality of the grassland could be estimated. The main goal was to determine species which significantly determine the pastoral value of the grassland. The quality (pastoral value) of the grassland was calculated using the numerical values of quality index of each individual species of each relevé of the community. For testing this numerical method, the total of 11 relevés of 4 grassland communities of hilly-mountainous area of Mt. Kopaonik was used. Analyzed vegetation includes previously unpublished phytocenological relevés as result of our own field research. All analyzed relevés were obtained using the method of the Swiss-French phytocenological school. The results showed that the best and the worst quality were determined for the ass. Festuco-Brometum erectii, and the ass. Nardetum strictae, respectively. Species that highly contributed to good and bad quality of grassland were Arrhenatherum elatius, Festuca rubra, Dactylis glomerata, Trifolium repens, etc., and Carduus alpestris, Hieracium hoppeanum, Ornithogalum umbelatum, respectively.Travnjaci predstavljaju jedan od najznačajnijih prirodnih resursa; na teritoriji Srbije obuhvataju oko 1.400.000 ha. Koriste se kao izvor stočne hrane ali i kao resurs materija koje se primenjuju u farmaceutskoj industriji. Uzimajući u obzir njihov veliki značaj istraživanja na travnjacima u svrhu ispitivanja njihovog kvaliteta vrše se u Srbiji od 60-ih godina dvadesetog veka na ovamo. Cilj ovog rada je prikazivanje metode kojom se numerički ocenjuje kvalitet travnjaka, a pored toga se prikazuje i doprinos svake, pojedinačne vrste ukupnom kvalitetu. Doprinos vrste, koji je konkretan broj - pozitivan ili negativan, zavisi od njene pokrovnosti i numeričkog indeksa kvaliteta. Zahvaljujući dobijenim vrednostima doprinosa svake vrste kvalitetu izvršena je podela na klastere. To je najpre izvršeno metodom k-means clustering, zadata su četiri klastera, u prvom je samo jedna vrsta Agrostis vulgaris, u drugom su vrste koje pozitivno utiču na kvalitet, u trećem vrste koje negativno utiču na kvalitet a u četvrtom klasteru su neutralne vrste. Ova podela je proverena metodom glavnih komponenti, i na grafikonu je uočljivo razdvajanje vrsta na pomenute klastere. Zahvaljujući ovoj metodi moguće je za kratko vreme dobiti podatke o kvalitetu nekog travnjaka i podatke o vrstama koje tu žive. Ti podaci o konkretnom travnjaku su dovoljni da se proceni njegova upotrebna vrednost kada je u pitanju stočarska proizvodnja a da se pritom izbegnu skupe hemijske analize

Phytosociology of Stipa-dominated steppe-like vegetation on the ultramafics of the Central Balkans

Despite the fact that dry grassland vegetation on ultramafics has been the object of continuous research in previous centuries, there remains a knowledge gap in regard to the initial stages of vegetation on ultramafic substrates. The Stipadominated dry grasslands of Serbia and Kosovo representing various initial phases in the overgrowth of ultramafic rocks were the object of the present study. A total of 213 relevés were made in different steppe-like Stipa species-dominated grasslands on ultramafics of Serbia including Kosovo, and were then analysed in the context of Balkan dry grassland vegetation of the Festuco-Brometea class. For cluster analyses, new relevés were analysed in order to characterize them floristically and sintaxonomically. For describing associations, we used the concept of “relative fidelity’’ allowing us to find the optimum occurrence of a species within a group of floristically similar communities. The threshold of the phi value was selected at 0.1 for new associations. Four new associations were distinguished: Stachyo scardicae-Stipetum tirsae ass. nov., Euphorbio glabriflorae-Stipetum pulcherrimae ass. nov., Alysso serbici-Stipetum pulcherrimae ass. nov. and Thymo striati-Stipetum mayerii ass. nov.. Relevés dominated by Stipa novakii were asigned to previously described Stipetum novaki Kabaš et D. Lakušić 2013. The first three new associations were assigned to Potentillion visianii, while the latter was assigned to the Centaureo kosaninii-Bromion fibrosi alliance of the Halacsyetalia sentneri order

Grassland communities of Stol mountain (eastern Serbia ): Vegetation and environment al relationships

The systematic survey of grassland communities was performed on Mt. Stol (eastern Serbia). The main aims of the research were to: (1) determine grassland vegetation types of the researched area; (2) correlate the impacts of the soil and environmental conditions on the occurrence of certain plant communities, and (3) comment on the conservational value of the grasslands in the researched area. The data set included 60 phytosociological relevés of grasslands recorded between 2001 and 2004. The main environmental gradients of species composition were analyzed by Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA). For the ecological interpretation of ordination axes, ecological indicator values were used. Three associations were distinguished: Danthonietum calycinae, Asperulo-Agrostietum vulgaris and Ranunculo bulbosi- Arrhenatheretum elatioris belonging to two alliances and two classes: Chrysopogono-Danthonion - Festuco-Brometea and Arrhenatherion - Molinio-Arrhenatheretea. The results of the DCA support our assumption that the main environmental gradient in the species composition of the grasslands is related to nutrients and moisture. The conservational value of grasslands in the researched area is discussed

Korovske vrste livadske zajednice Danthonietum calycinae Cinc. et Kojić 1958. planine Stol kod Bora

An analysis of participation of weed species in the floristic composition of the meadow community ass. Danthonietum calycinae spreading on Mount Stol was carried out in order to estimate the quality and management of its grassland. The percentage of weed species in the investigated community amounted to 56.91 %. Among the poisonous species, the most abundant were Rhinanthus rumelicus Velen., Euphrasia stricta Wolff ex Lehm, Colchicum autumnale L., Digitalis ambigua Miller and Euphorbia cyparissias L. With regard to the number of undesirable and harmful species, this community is less suitable as a source of forage. For improving forage quality in this community, management measures are recommended.Floristički sastav korovskih vrsta analiziran je u livadskoj fitocenozi Danthonietum calycinae Cinc. et Kojić 1958. na planini Stol kod Bora, kako bi se ocenio kvalitet i mogućnost korišćenja ove zajednice. Istraživanje florističkog sastava obuhvatilo je procenu ukupnog učešća, biološki spektar korovskih vrsta u ispitivanoj zajednici, kao i njihovu kategorizaciju s obzirom na stepen štetnosti za domaće životinje. Procentualno učešće korovskih vrsta je 56,91%. Od otrovnih vrsta koje se javljaju u ispitivanoj zajednici najvažnije su Rhinanthus rumelicus Velen., Euphrasia stricta Wolff ex Lehm, Colchicum autumnale L., Digitalis ambigua Miller and Euphorbia cyparissias L. Kako ova livadska zajednica ima umanjen kvalitet poželjno je da se primene različite mere popravke radi povećanja prinosa i dobijanja kvalitetnije stočne hrane

Formalized classification of semi-dry grasslands in central and eastern Europe

European semi-dry grasslands are among the most species-rich vegetation types in the northern hemisphere and form an important part of the habitat mosaics in the forest-steppe zone. However. there is no comprehensive evaluation of the variation in their composition and the phytosocio-logical classification of these grasslands. For the syntaxonomic revision, we used a dataset of 34,173 vegetation plot records (releves) from central and eastern Europe. which were assigned to the class Fesiuco-Bromeiea using the diagnostic species listed in the EuroVegChecklist. To determine the diagnostic species of the orders, we used a TWINSPAN classification of the whole dataset. Of the total dataset, 15,449 releves were assigned to the order Brachypodietalia pinnati. which corresponds to semi-dry grasslands. This subset was again classified using TWINSPAN. Formal definitions of the following alliances were established: Mesobromion erecti, Cirsio-Brachypodion pinnati (incl. Fragario-Trifolion montani. Agrosiio-Avenulion schellianae, Scabioso ochroleucae-Poion angustifoliae and Adonido vernalis-Stipion iirsae), Scorzonerion villosae and Chrysopogono-Danshonion. Another alliance, Armerion elongatae (=Koelerio-Phleion phleoidis p.p.). is transitional towards the class Koelerio-Corynephoreiea and its status needs further evaluation. We also established formal definitions of all of the associations of Mesobromion and Cirsio-Brachypodion within the area studied. Associations were identified using (i) a TWINSPAN classification of the whole order, (ii) TWINSPAN classifications of regionally restricted data sets (usually all Brachypodietalia plots in one country) and (iii) existing national classification schemes. All formal definitions were written in the expert system language of the JUICE program. To obtain a more complete picture of the floristic similarities and gradients. we performed a DCA ordination of the associations. Our results revealed that meadow steppes in the forest-steppe zone in eastern Europe are very similar to semi-dry grasslands in central Europe

Testing macroecological abundance patterns: The relationship between local abundance and range size, range position and climatic suitability among European vascular plants

Aim: A fundamental question in macroecology centres around understanding the relationship between species' local abundance and their distribution in geographical and climatic space (i.e. the multi‐dimensional climatic space or climatic niche). Here, we tested three macroecological hypotheses that link local abundance to the following range properties: (a) the abundance-range size relationship, (b) the abundance-range centre relationship and (c) the abundance-suitability relationship. Location: Europe. Taxon: Vascular plants. Methods: Distribution range maps were extracted from the Chorological Database Halle to derive information on the range and niche sizes of 517 European vascular plant species. To estimate local abundance, we assessed samples from 744,513 vegetation plots in the European Vegetation Archive, where local species' abundance is available as plant cover per plot. We then calculated the 'centrality', that is, the distance between the location of the abundance observation and each species' range centre in geographical and climatic space. The climatic suitability of plot locations was estimated using coarse‐grain species distribution models (SDMs). The relationships between centrality or climatic suitability with abundance was tested using linear models and quantile regression. We summarized the overall trend across species' regression slopes from linear models and quantile regression using a meta‐analytical approach. Results: We did not detect any positive relationships between a species' mean local abundance and the size of its geographical range or climatic niche. Contrasting yet significant correlations were detected between abundance and centrality or climatic suitability among species. Main conclusions: Our results do not provide unequivocal support for any of the relationships tested, demonstrating that determining properties of species' distributions at large grains and extents might be of limited use for predicting local abundance, including current SDM approaches. We conclude that environmental factors influencing individual performance and local abundance are likely to differ from those factors driving plant species' distribution at coarse resolution and broad geographical extents